Last Exile -Ginyoku no Fam- – 17

I really liked how Sadri played off the distrust between Millia’s coalition army. It seemed like an ingenious strategy, one you could expect from an experienced general, and added in another layer to make the battle more realistic. You have to salute Orang for not panicking like his subordinates and firing upon the Glacies fighters. You also have to give Fam props (albeit reluctantly) for stopping Dian since she looked like she was going to retaliate out of spite.

Just when Fam was showing some signs of a more compelling story, it goes and trashes all the suspense and realism it created over the course of the series. I think it’s unrealistic for a ceasefire to occur in that situation even if it were Sara asking for one. I’m sure Sadri cares for Sara but I find it highly unlikely he would just ditch Luscinia (someone who he has backed for all these years) for her. I also find it unlikely that Sadri would just fall in line like the others. If only Luscinia were going to be as easy to convince. A more plausible outcome would have been Sadri partially destroying Boreas seeing as he already had the upper hand by filling in that gorge, which would then have led to a conditional surrender. Yes, the Silvius came in to save the day but I don’t think a lone ship could have salvaged that battle from the clutches of defeat. Also, that raises the question that if they were going to defend Boreas, why didn’t they just park their Exile nearby?

The scene with the Silvius coming to save the day left me very disappointed. I picture one of the writers playing a SHMUP and thinking it might be a good idea to lift a special attack from one of the games. It was not a good idea and felt uninspired. It seemed like they were just trying to save time instead of putting proper thought into how the Silvius could reenter an important battle while having an impact on the outcome.

On the other hand, this episode’s music was great. The instrumentals really fit the melancholy yet hopeful mood. The new ED really reminded me of some music you might find in an epic RPG like Kingdom Hearts. I wholeheartedly approve of the pieces used in this episode. I also found the animation to be some of the best I’ve seen in weeks.

Notes:
* “Laha” looks similar to Fam. Possibly related?
* Blowing up the cliff and filling the gorge was way too simple.
* New ED video for 「Innocent Eyes」 by Hitomi Kuroishi might come later.
* For those of you who don’t know what a “SHMUP” is, it’s short for “shoot’em up.” It a genre of arcade games. Search on youtube if you want an example.
* Full-length images: 05, 07, 25

Silvius was too overpowered, just check the scene which they completely own everyone. It’s ridiculous. And of course, all that ended with an random ceasefire(good to mention the transition for after the part Silvius appeared was really awkward). Also, with just a few episodes left, just now they put anything directly related to Fam? I can’t even imagine how rushed the final episodes will have to be.

The pacing was way off this episode. They were skipping back and forth between stuff, and developments were happening without any build-up. Then the Silvius comes in and pulls off a Death Blossom maneuver (kudos to anyone who gets the reference).

the way i see it, there’s a lot of that in this series. cue back to Millia OUT OF SHEER DUMB LUCK shooting down a big ship. or how inexplicably and effortlessly Fam captured ships or Ades losing them. same with how inexplicably and effortless the terrorists infiltrated the Grand Race event and killed the person they wanted to kill.

and for that i have stopped taking this series seriously, it’s just comedy perhaps even parody to me at this point.

The scene where the Silvius came in had me shaking my head. It spins around and just owns everything with no retaliatory fire? Seriously? Compare to the Silvana in season 1 which was powerful but not ridiculously so. This season in contrast seems way more… unrealistic? It’s not a word I like to use considering both seasons are pure fantasy, but suspension of disbelief is WAY harder to achieve this time around because the scenarios just seem so unbelievable.

Eh guys. Silvius sneaked up on the First fleet by going underwater and as she rose above the water, she opened her front doors and fired at the middle of the Ades Battleship, and the rockets penetrated the ship’s armor and broke her back, sinking the ship. We all know the rockets were powerful, and in Silvius’ case, they seem to have sorted out the issue with long range accuracy, which was a problem with the original rockets on the Silvana. The original rockets on the Silvana were powerful enough to hold back the Exile’s tentacles for a brief moment. Who is to say they weren’t capable of penetrating the Ades Battleship armor? the only thing is that the opening of the armor plates leaves the Silvius vulnerable, and the ship’s captain took advantage of the confusion to quickly unleash a barrage of rockets. The same trick is unlikely to work this time, but all battles boil down to taking advantage of the enemy’s confusion and hitting them hard when they aren’t prepared.

If the argument that Silvius is overpowered, the same could be said of Silvana, mind. It’s not like the Ades Battleships have displayed Guild level of armor so far.

Well said, Tatiana used the Ades confusion to her advantage and fire immediately before the captains of the Ades ships realize to what’s going on. I don’t think it was that unrealistic, it just a one time situation that may not happen again.

Raha seems to be Sadri’s daughter or a close relative. The first time we see her is via the portrait in Sadri’s locket in episode 11. The woman who was carrying Fam as a baby looks like a more grown-up version of her… Now if you follow the dots, it seems rather obvious that Fam is related to Sadri.

I was looking last night and there didn’t look like much resemblance. But I can see it now. Wonder how much of a role it’s going to play. The story would seem to end fine even if she didn’t find any long lost relatives or family.

and if i would continue the Red Stoyline. I let Luscinia build a a large “Drone” Army. Perhaps these Facility he found in the Ice Area, is really a Factory of the Guild. That can mass Produce Drones, and controlled with “lost technology” (well, we would called Computer AI)

Because, it must be his time to raise the villain Sun, now.Did he not go alone with his buddy and Emillias older Sister on this trip? All others remained under the control of this Old men…

or to reduce “Budget” Money. He found the Secret Override Codes for the Claudia’s Engine and can take force control of Ades or all kind of Claudia steamed Ships…(aka shut down or overdrive engine Bomb)

It seems like in the rush to progress the plot more quickly, they took HUGE liberties with how the episode was organized and formatted. They tried to pack in so many developments at once that they didn’t even have the time left to do proper transitions between scenes.

That being said, there was a great deal happening at once this episode with characters coming and going, politics, etc.

The defense of Boreas was the centerpiece of the episode but I feel like the battle could have been handled better. I have no doubt as to the tactical backing of the battle but a lot of that didn’t get through to me as a viewer.

For example, how did the ship that Liliana was in get so exposed? I understand the hidden pincer might have caught them unawares but there was nothing to show that the coalition had spread their force so far that the slow lumbering Ades battleships could get so far. Was Liliana at the front then? Why didn’t we see any of that action?

I fear that without relaying the finer parts of the battle, the show risks the image of commanders that just throw ships at each other until one side gives up, what with the huge numbers that Sadri seems to lose but presses on.

The best part of the battle was indeed Sadri’s ploy to turn the Glacies and Ades against each other. But the key here is that the focus was not on the fighting itself, but rather the tensions between former enemies and between nationalities that breed mistrust & fear.

For example, how did the ship that Liliana was in get so exposed? I understand the hidden pincer might have caught them unawares but there was nothing to show that the coalition had spread their force so far that the slow lumbering Ades battleships could get so far. Was Liliana at the front then? Why didn’t we see any of that action?

Liliana? I’m sure you meant Millia.

From my understanding there was no hidden pincer move. The First Fleet (Sadri) was sending a message to the Third Fleet (Orang) to perform a pincer move. Orang had already flipped sides but there’s already distrust brewing over the loyalty of the Third Fleet and the Glacies fighters. Sadri was playing on this distrust. If I remember correctly, the Third Fleet had played a role in the destruction of Glacies (along with all the other fleets except for the Fifth which is headed by Vasant). Also, during the briefing last episode, Dian expressed that she wanted to take on the Third Fleet instead of the Fourth (Sorush).

I think Millia had rushed out with the Third Fleet to help command them. She would have been near the middle-front of the formation. I think the front line was destroyed after all the confusion.

Sylvius shouldn’t have enough firepower to deter an entire fleet of ships. I don’t know why they even showed the sylvius to be helpful at all. For all I know, it’s just a faster than normal ship with a lot of conventional weapons. No way that can match up to a fleet. Next time the sylvius tries to pull something like this again (run into the middle of a fleet and fire at all directions), it needs to be shot at all sides and downed.

Right? Last Exile has a pretty good record of staying realistic. For example, in the original, the Silvana was pretty much equal to 3 Urbanus-class ships. In Fam, they’ve shown the Silvius to not be completely overpowered as it has been damaged extensively. This last thing they’ve done is discredit what they’ve established over time.

hehehehe, every “first line” dat you start your post with either has a “meh” or “…eh” vibe to it. this show is really that bad huh? it kinda reminds me of that other failed *opinion* venture Xam’d…..what a let down

It’s not outright bad. It’s just that for everything that they seem to do correctly, there’s something that do badly.

If this show was really “that bad”, I think I would have dropped it by now. So really, I haven’t become completely fed up with its missteps. I’m just more or less disappointed sometimes. Keep in mind that there are very few perfect anime. I’m really just hoping for a string of good episodes. For example, not every single one of Persona 4′s episodes are homeruns. It’s just really good at stringing together some really funny, good episodes and they do more things tto help the show than hurt it.